Clover Grocery vs. IT Retail: Which Is Best for Independent Grocers?

Having the right point of sale (POS) system can make all the difference, especially when dealing with perishable inventory. But with so many options on the market, it can be tough to decide which one to choose.

Two popular choices for independent grocers are Clover Grocery and IT Retail. Both offer a range of features designed to streamline operations, manage inventory, and provide exceptional customer service. However, each system has unique strengths and weaknesses. 

Which is best for your store?

In this post, we'll compare Clover Grocery and IT Retail's key features, pricing, and customer support, giving you everything you need to pick the right solution for your store. 

Clover Grocery vs. IT Retail: How To Choose

Choosing the right POS system is crucial for more than transaction processing. Your point of sale solution is the backbone of your operations, from inventory management to customer relationships. 

Independent grocers need a system that can keep up with the unique demands of a grocery store, like managing perishable inventory and handling high-volume transactions. The right POS system can streamline your operations, helping you compete with larger chains.

Related Read: Grocery Store Inventory 101: The What, Why, and How for Inventory Success

So, what key features should every grocer look for in their point of sale system? Let's break it down:

• Support for multiple payment methods: Your system should handle everything from cash and cards to mobile payments.
• Inventory management and real-time stock updates: Stay on top of your inventory to reduce waste and avoid stockouts.
• Integrated scale for weighing produce and bulk items: These features are essential for accurate pricing and efficient checkout of price-by-weight items.
• Ability to handle promotions, discounts, and coupons: Your point of sale system should be able to help you offer flexible pricing and packages.
• Customer loyalty program integration: Build repeat business by rewarding your most valuable customers.
• Detailed sales reporting and analytics: Make data-driven decisions to optimize your business.
• Hardware durability and reliability: Your system needs to withstand the fast pace and wear and tear of a busy grocery environment.
• Age verification for restricted products: Ensure compliance when selling alcohol, tobacco, or other age-restricted items.
• Integration with EBT: Process SNAP payments efficiently to serve all segments of your community.
• Support for self-checkout kiosks: Offer self-checkout options to save on staffing and reduce wait times during busy periods.

With these essential features in mind, let's compare Clover Grocery and IT Retail. Both systems offer solutions for grocery stores, but they have distinct differences that could make one a better fit for your specific needs. We'll examine each option in detail, giving you the information you need to make an informed decision for your business. 

Clover Grocery

Clover offers a versatile, one-size solution that caters to a wide range of industries. It's designed to streamline store operations and offer businesses flexibility in selling products or services. Some industries Clover serves include:

• Retail stores (including grocery)
• Restaurants and bars
• Service industry businesses

Though Clover serves various industries, it offers several features that grocery store owners can benefit from. 

Let’s examine its feature stack in detail. 

• Inventory management:

Clover offers robust inventory management capabilities, letting you track products with variants, attributes, and unique combinations. The system also provides low inventory notifications to prevent stockouts. 

• Payments and exchanges:

Clover supports a wide array of payment methods, including credit, debit, gift cards, NFC, and contactless payments. It also offers offline payment processing, which is crucial during internet outages. Rapid refund processing helps streamline returns.

• Online selling:

Clover integrates with BigCommerce for easy online store setup. It also offers integration with Pointy to sell on Google, expanding your store's reach. The SKU IQ integration allows for the syncing of sales, inventory, and customer data across online and offline channels.

• Restaurant-specific features:

Grocerants may enjoy some of Clover’s restaurant-focused features, including order management, kitchen integration, table mapping, and online ordering solutions.

Customer Reviews:

What do customers say about working with Clover Grocery? Clover customers rate the point of sale provider at an average of 3.5 stars on TrustPilot. 

Positive reviews praise Clover for its customer support, onboarding process, and ease of credit card transaction processing. Some complaints for Clover center around long hold times for customer service, confusion regarding pricing and charges, and issues with hardware and battery life.

Pricing: 

Clover’s Standard package starts at $135 per month for 36 months.

IT Retail

IT Retail offers a comprehensive retail management solution tailored specifically for independent grocers. Born out of real-world grocery experience, our solution and company understand the unique challenges independent stores face when competing against large chains.

IT Retail goes beyond basic transaction processing, offering an all-in-one platform that streamlines operations, improves the customer experience, and provides valuable insights to drive business growth. We serve all businesses in the grocery store and market industry, including: 

• Organic and natural food stores
• Butcher shops
• Fish markets
• General stores
• Co-Ops
• Ethnic markets
• Bodegas

Our dedication to the grocery industry means we offer all the tools you need to work at your best and none of the expensive extras that don’t benefit you or your business. Some of our top features include:

• Cloud-based system:

Our serverless, cloud-based architecture reduces upfront costs, ensures automatic updates, enables remote access to data, and provides scalability as your business grows. You can also use our solution for multi-store management.

• Powerful inventory management:

Our inventory management system goes beyond basic stock tracking, offering automated reorder alerts based on sales trends, vendor-specific reports for optimized purchasing, real-time updates across all sales channels, and integration with scale systems.

• E-commerce integration:

IT Retail integrates seamlessly with major e-commerce platforms, allowing you to sync inventory across physical and online stores and manage online orders and in-store pickups.

• Offline functionality:

The ability to work offline ensures business continuity during internet outages. Transactions are stored locally and synced once connectivity is restored, preventing lost sales and data.

• Durable hardware:

Our rugged hardware is designed to withstand the demanding grocery environment. With a lifespan of 5+ years, it offers an excellent return on investment. The hardware is also built for easy cleaning and maintenance, which is crucial in food-handling environments.

• Expert support:

IT Retail's support team brings grocery-specific expertise to every interaction. This industry knowledge means faster problem resolution and valuable insights for optimizing your store operations.

• Loss prevention:

The system's advanced analytics go beyond simple theft detection. They help you identify suspicious patterns in employee behavior, track and analyze shrinkage data, and generate detailed reports to improve your loss prevention strategies.

We also offer a host of additional features, including:

• Customer loyalty programs 
• Integration with self-checkout kiosks 
• Advanced reporting and analytics 
• Compliance features for age-restricted products and EBT transactions
  
  

Customer Reviews:

Our customers love working with us, and we love working with them. Our TrustPilot TrustPilot average is 4.7 stars.

Our happiest customers praise our fast and friendly customer service and technical support, our dependable hardware, and user-friendly features like EBT payment processing and advanced reporting. Some older customer reviews note difficulties with processing speed for reporting and advanced features.

Pricing:

Get a custom quote for your ideal solution using our transparent build and price tool today. 

Clover Grocery vs. IT Retail

Is Clover Grocery or IT Retail Best for Your Store?

The world of grocery retail is evolving, and independent store owners have more options than ever to stay competitive. When selecting your point of sale solution and other retail technology, you need to find the right fit for your needs and business model to get the best results.

While Clover Grocery offers a solid set of features, IT Retail stands out as the go-to choice for independent grocery stores looking for a tailored solution. We understand the specific challenges you face and have designed our system to address them head-on. 

With IT Retail, you get all the essential features you need to run your store efficiently without paying for unnecessary extras that bloat your costs.

Ready to see how IT Retail can transform your grocery business? Schedule a demo today and discover how our solution can streamline your operations, boost your bottom line, and help you serve your community better.